Support for the Human Resources Development Strategy and Social Impact Assessment Framework

Overview

Reference: P-SC-IAD-003

Approval date: 15/04/2014

Start date: 31/03/2015

Appraisal Date: 01/12/2013

Status: OngoingOnGo

Implementing Agency: MINISTRY OF FINANCE

Location: Though out the Country

Description

The project consist of the following;

Component 1 - The support for the development of the National Human Resources:

a) Conduct a nationwide HR needs analysis of which the outcome will culminate into the formulation of a multiyear HR development plan in line with the national development strategy.

b) Conduct an institutional capacity assessment of key labor market related institutions (e.g. Ministry of Labor) with the aim of providing a thorough knowledge and understanding of the strategic vision, current and foreseen challenges, and institutional capacity within the context of meeting HR supply and demand.

c) Formulate a national HR Development Strategy and update the national HR development policy which dates back to 2005 to bring it in line with the current review of the national Employment Policy and economic realities.

d) Conduct training needs assessment of elements of an HR planning module to be included within a degree course in HR development in collaboration with Seychelles Institute of Management/ University of Seychelles.

e) Develop an accredited Train the Trainer program in collaboration with Seychelles Institute of Management/ University of Seychelles

f) Develop strategies and policies to meet skills gaps in the short, medium and long term to meet development objectives.

g) Develop an appropriate standard HR information system.

h) Develop a national job coding system in association with the National Statistics Bureau.

i) Develop a national guide for the HR Development Strategy

Component 2: The support for the social impact assessment framework:

a) A sensitization workshop for the government and main stakeholders, such as development partners, the private sector and beneficiaries, on social impact assessment.

b). A capacity building workshop with core planners and social development experts within the government to develop the SIA framework. The aim of this second activity is to situate the framework within the Seychelles context and the institutional arrangements involved. For example, an important policy question to consider would be whether the social impact assessment will be undertaken as a component of the Environmental Impact Assessment or as a separate approach. Currently, the Environment Protection (Impact Assessment) Regulations as of 3 June 1996 do not cover social analysis.

c) A training workshop targeting the Government planners will finalize the framework. The aim of this workshop is to introduce the framework to development institutions with the intention of making appropriate amendments to the document before its validation.

d) A validation workshop to ensure governmental ownership will conclude the intervention.

Objectives

The specific objectives of the operation are twofold: a) to support the development of the national HR Strategy in order to transform the knowledge and skills base and diversify the economy; and b) to support the development of a Social Impact Assessment (SIA) framework which aims to assess the social impact of large scale developments, for example in the tourism industry.

Rationale

This request was first submitted by the Government of Seychelles (GoS) in 2012. A complete package which was in accordance with the provisions of the guidelines was submitted in March 2013. The request is part of efforts undertaken by the government to diversify its economic base and move to a knowledge based society. The provision of grant resources from the MIC Fund forms part of the renewed efforts of the Bank Group to revive a larger pipeline of projects in MICs and renew its engagement in the human development sector in the Seychelles. It will be a gate opener for the human development sector and the Bank to engage with the Seychelles on a larger scale in the future. As the country is diversifying its economic base, large investments in human development will need to be undertaken in the short and medium term. For the Bank, this is a huge opportunity to increase its partnership with the Government and contribute to the development of the country using its vast experiences from dealing with other African countries and through its links with other countries and institutions outside Africa.

The development of the national HR development strategy will enhance the socio-economic development of the country. Currently, the needs for qualified and competent human resources to achieve the targeted objectives for continuous economic development are not fulfilled. The central prerequisite for achieving such an ambition largely depends on the country's vision, strategic priorities and is intimately linked to a human resources base that is dynamic, multi and highly skilled, responsive and proactive. The government has strategically invested in education and training. However it needs to address specific gaps of skills and expertise, particularly at managerial, professional and technical level, which have resulted in an increase in expatriate employment.

The Government aims at reversing the high employment of expatriate workers and improving the employment prospects for nationals. In 2011, the expatriate employment figure stood at 11,864 employees, accounting for 24% of the country's formal employment. 94.4% of the expatriates were employed in the private sector, 1.4% in the public service and 4.2% in the parastatal sector. The industry with the highest share of expatriates was construction (43%) followed by the hotel industry (22%) and manufacturing (12%). In the tourism sector the need to replace expat labor occupying senior level posts is becoming more and more important in ensuring sustainable income distribution as this industry expands. The fisheries sector, the breadwinner of 17% of the workforce, aims to transform the country into a seafood processing centre. However, the manpower requirements for fish processing for exports, marine scientists and many others are a sizeable constraint. Therefore, the government needs to develop a comprehensive and strategic human resources vision and short to medium term development plans as well as put in place a mechanism to strengthen human resources planning, monitoring and linkages with the labor market.

The national human resources development strategy will lead to the production of a large scale human capacity development program. Once the strategy is in place, the country will need financial and technical support to implement the said strategy in order for the country to strengthen its human resources planning and close the skills gap to the labor market with a view to strategically aligning the education sector to future development priorities. This will offer further opportunities for the Bank to continue to engaged with the Government and be one of the partners to be approached by the government to implement the human capital development programme. The strategy is the prerequisite for the creation of an enabling environment.

The financing of the development of a Social Impact Assessment (SIA) framework aims to build institutional capacity to outline the social consequences of investments and link them to policy making. Social impacts not only need to be identified and measured but also need to be managed in such a way that the positive aspects are magnified and the negative ones minimized. Such a concern has emerged in the aftermath of multiple operations such as housing estates on re-claimed lands, constr uction of five star tourism establishments on the coastline, and the immigration of Asian construction workers. Negative environmental and social consequences on the population and their livelihoods have been experienced and in the absence of a social impact assessment framework and other related mechanisms, social planners have been adopting a reactive approach to development. SIA aims to drive improvements that increase the value of programs to the people and helps the country to better plan, implement, and effectively bring initiatives to scale. It also facilitates accountability and helps guide the allocation of resources. Therefore, there is a need to develop a social impact assessment framework and capacity through the creation of a specialized unit within the government to outline clear guidelines and principles to assist all sectors in better understanding and mitigating the social consequences of these investments.

Proposed activities under the SIA framework will create knowledge within the government in designing and managing inclusive development initiatives in Island and other Regional Member Country (RMC). Through south-south cooperation, other RMCs will be able to benefit from this initiative in the medium term through knowledge sharing. The components complement each other perfectly: The SIA will depict the social consequences stemming from the HR constraints the country currently faces such as the need for foreign labor and the fact that nationals do not have the right skills for a job in the changing labor market. The national HR development strategy will enable the country to plan its future HR needs evidence based.

Benefits

The main benefits to be derived from Component 1 of the project will be the development of a nationwide HR strategy together with an institutional capacity assessment of the key labour market related institutions. This is extremely important due to the need to diversify the country's economic base. The country needs to plan strategically with regards to the skills needed on the long term to be able to provide jobs for nationals in lieu of recruiting specialists from abroad. Building on this, the national HR development strategy will be formulated and the existing national HR development policy updated as well as mechanisms to meet the existing skills gap developed. A training needs assessment will be conducted. The Operation will fund the conduct of a labour market analysis to inform the HR development strategy. Lastly, the Operation will lay the foundations for an effective labour market information system in developing a national job coding system and providing the relevant information technology (IT) needs. The main outcome would be increased capacity within the government to be able to undertake a comprehensive HR needs assessment at the national level. This will lay the ground for the envisaged long term development of the country and will be an important pillar in the fight against youth unemployment.

The main benedict to be derived from Component 2 will be an established SIA framework and a unit within the government that can undertake such assessments independently. There is currently no framework for conducting SIA in the country. The establishment of the framework will increase the awareness for the concept of a SIA among key stakeholders from the government, civil society, and private sector. The role of the unit will be to champion and build capacity across government on SIA - design of mitigation measures and monitoring compliance and implementation of proposed Social Impact Mitigation measures. This is not undertaken at present. The exact institutional and legal arrangements of such a unit will be elaborated through this operation. The operation aims to address shortfalls with regards to the policy environment and the day to day functioning. The ultimate outcome of this component will be an institutionalized Social Impact Assessment methodology and strengthened capacity of the government to undertake social impact assessments for all development operations in the country. Social consequences of operations will be better understood. Currently, the government is not able to measure and evaluate social consequences of development operations in the country. This has become acute, as construction of large hotel resorts entail the arrival of foreign labour into the country. Furthermore, the government has constructed, for the first time, housing estates on reclaimed land and it cannot assess the social consequences of such investments.